LGBTHomelessYouth

Racial diversity among LGBT homeless youth
Few studies explore the racial diversity of LGBT homeless youth, but those that
have suggest that LGBT homeless youth are disproportionately people of color.
Studies that have focused on self-reported race demographics among LGBT youth
are limited, but a 2007 survey of homeless youth in New York City found that
approximately 28 percent of surveyed black youth and 31 percent of Hispanic
youth identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. 27 Put another way, 44 percent of
lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth in the survey also indicated that they are black,
and 26 percent indicated that they are Hispanic. 28 The survey also found that
approximately 7 percent of black homeless youth and slightly more than 4 percent
of Hispanic homeless youth identified as transgender. 29 This works out to roughly
62 percent of the transgender survey respondents indicating they were black, and
20 percent indicating they were Hispanic. 30 This breakdown suggests that youth of
color identify as LGBT at average or slightly higher rates compared to other racial
subpopulations of New York City’s homeless youth. 31
Service providers who work specifically with LGBT youth also report serving a
greater number of youth of color, suggesting that—at the very least—homeless
youth of color are present in LGBT-specific programs at higher rates. For example,
the Ruth Ellis Center in Detroit reports that approximately 99 percent of their
youth clients are African American. 32 Additionally, from 2000 to 2005, Green
Chimneys Triangle Tribe Apartments, a transitional living program, or TLP, for
LGBT youth in New York City, reported a youth client population that was 44
percent Latino or Hispanic, 36 percent black or African American, and 10 percent
white or Caucasian. 33
Regional differences in the percentage of LGBT homeless youth
As the data above illustrate, there may be regional differences in the representation
of LGBT youth among homeless youth populations in the United States. Patterns
in the data suggest that in Midwestern states, there is a slightly lower percentage of
homeless youth who identify as LGBT compared to other regions in the country.
In the Midwest, between 10 percent and 25 percent of homeless youth identify
as LGBT, compared to studies focused on the East and West Coasts, which found
that roughly 25 percent to 50 percent of the population identify as LGBT. 34
6 Center for American Progress | Seeking Shelter